• New Beginnings •

Layla's POV

I was not feeling myself.

Maybe it was because I wasn't doing much like I usually did before I gave birth, but I was feeling this cloud loom over me, and I hated to feel that way.

I had this anxious feeling that I might not neglect my girl being caught up in my thoughts, which shouldn't even matter.

I had never been one to be conscious of my body, but lately when I change or my eyes land on my stomach when I look in the mirror, I couldn't help but feel consious of the stretch mark which had formed on my belly after birth.

I couldn't stop having thoughts that I should start more exercises. I started working out 6 weeks postpartum after I was given a green light from Sienna, and Sinn didn't protest against it.

Sinn seemed to notice me looking at my belly in the mirror, as I was wearing a bralette which made it easier for me to feed Vivienne, and I quickly turned away and made my way towards our bed. It is no surprise that I've started sharing his portion, and it is basically now our shared space.

I glanced over at Vivienne sleeping soundly in her cot by the bed and went towards the bed to lay down cause I had been working out intensely for the past hour and so and now my legs were about to give up on me when I felt arms wrap around my waist and pull me towards them.

I didn't have to guess twice to know who it was, even if I didn't sense him come in, I could tell it's him by the way he touched me so affectionately.

I took in the warmth of his embrace as he held me from behind. His face rested in the crook of my neck, staring at me from there.

I paused, confused by his stare, and looked back at him, turning my neck slightly to the left to meet his gaze.

"What?" I asked in a soft chuckle, and he kept on staring at me, and the more he did that, the more the smile on my face widened.

It was just the way he looked at me from behind me. Hugging me and resting his head on my shoulder and staring at me, which made it all so comical for me, but in an endearing way.

"Aren't you going to say something or just keep staring at me like this?" I asked him, the smile not leaving my face as I stared back at him.

Suddenly, his hand grazed my exposed belly and rubbed it like he used to when I was pregnant with Vivienne. He wrapped his arms around my belly, and I heard his voice speak softly in my ear, "You're beautiful."

I looked at him, and he didn't stop staring at me with his intense gaze as his head rested on my shoulder from behind me.

I didn't know how much his words would lift the weight off me. I couldn't help the soft chuckle as I kept my hand on top of his from where he held me. "Thank you for reminding me that."

Sinn's lips formed a smile hearing my response, "Always a pleasure."

*

Sinn held Vivienne on top of him as she had finally slept after crying all night because she was teething, and it was really heartbreaking to see her cry and not be able to do anything.

After I gave her my finger to chew on, it seemed to lessen her discomfort, calming her down and, in turn, making her stop crying.

Sinn asked to let him take her as I've been with her the whole day while he went to run some errands and wanted me to rest.

"She just calmed down after I gave her my finger to chew on." I told him as he peeked at Vivienne, who was almost dozing off chewing on my finger.

"Let me take on from here, and you rest. You must be exhausted." He wasn't wrong, I was exhausted both physically and mentally after seeing my baby girl crying in so much pain from teething.

I gave her to Sinn, who took her gingerly and as soon as my finger had left her mouth and she couldn't chew on it any more, she burst out crying making my panic instincts instantly jumping in, but just as quickly as she started crying again, she had stopped when Sinn gave her his finger to chew on instead.

I saw how pleased she was with her father and had stopped crying, dozing off again as Sinn wiped away her little tears.

That was an hour ago, and now we all lay on bed. Me beside Sinn, and our girl sleeping soundly on her father.

Sinn had a protective arm over her, which pat her back gently ever so often.

I stared at the scene before me, of the man I love holding our 9 month old daughter.

Time sure pass before you know it.

Vivienne had grown in size, and her features were more prominent now. I grazed her cheek as her tiny body cuddled on Sinn, making me smile.

"She looks so much like us that I don't even know who she resembles more." I said, and Sinn looked at me.

"She has your eyes." I added as I stared at Sinn and his grey eyes, which looked at me, and every time they did, I could feel my heart skipping.

"She's got your smile." Sinn stated as he stared at me, and I saw his eyes travel to my lips lingering there briefly before meeting my eyes again.

I couldn't help but smile at his statement, and he cracked me his smile in return, which I've started to see more of since we officially started going out.

"Yuri told me that he'll be continuing to go on missions. Cause he's still affiliated with the yakuza." I told Sinn, and he didn't say anything in response but just listened.

"I really hope Yuri can get rid of the yakuza and get his freedom to do whatever he wants."

I sincerely felt that way since Yuri was the only one among the Three Devils who was sent to Papa Don as a form of peace treaty from the Yakuza. With Papa Don gone, Leo and Sinn were owners of their lives now, but I couldn't say the same for Yuri. He was still connected to the yakuza.

Sinn smiled, and it wasn't the warm smile that was only reserved for me but the smile of Sinn Phoenix from the Three Devils, whom I had first met and assigned to work under.

"We underestimate Yuri. From how long I've known him, I can say that Yuri would never let anything control him."

His warm smile made its way back to his lips as he turned to me, "So I don't think we need to worry about him." And I took his word for it. I really don't want to underestimate any of the Three Devils.

Suddenly, a thought came to my mind, which I had buried deep in and had forgotten about it due to the chaos in my life.

"Hey, what's going on between Leo and Sienna?" Sinn looked up from Vivienne at me as he was patting her little head when I hit him with this question.

"No, seriously, something must be going on between those two cause I sensed this extreme tension from them, and my observations are usually not wrong. I sensed something from Jasper and Suzzie, and I was right."

I ranted, and Sinn heard me quietly and spoke after I had finished, "I'm glad you sensed it, and I'm not the only one who'll have to deal with watching them pathetically."

"What do you mean pathetic? They would make a cute couple." I stated, imagining Leo and Sienna together and how perfect they looked together.

"Pathetic cause I've noticed them liking each other since our preteens, but none of them has the guts to make a move. I don't know what the fuck they're waiting for." Sinn sighed and I could see he must have kept this information for so long and is finally relieved to let it out to someone.

After we got together, Sinn had started openeing up and being more comfortable sharing his feelings for which I couldn't be more glad of.

"Why don't you do something?" I teased and Sinn shot me a look.

"I'm not crazy to interfere. They'll manage on their own and to be honest, I would rather burn myself alive then try to get my sister and friend together." Sinn made a disgusted face and I laughed at this side of his.

I couldn't help but notice him refering to Leo as his friend. He never labeled him that before. It only confirms that he see's them as his friends and not just people who he worked with and shared the same trauma and hardships with.

"I guess they'll figure it out on their own." I stated as I looked at my Sinn and pecked his cheek.

Sinn paused at my action but then gazed at me with a different expression which I was all to familiar with.

"You're playing a dangerous game, Rebel."

My heart picked up its pace when he called me using his nickname which he had called me ever since we first interacted.

"You're Rebel." I said, reciprocating the intensity which he had in his eyes for me.

But he suddenly held my arm and pulled me to him which dazed me.

He held my hand as I was pressing to his side, and all throughout it Vivienne slept peacefully on top of him.

It took me a while to process when I felt a cool sensation on top of my finger.

I peeked at it to find a sparkling gem on top of a band placed on my ring finger.

I immediately looked at him and found him already looking at me. He had a smile playing on his lips as they parted, "What do you think of spending the rest of your life with me?"

"Am I not already?" I asked instead, a smirk playing on my lips too.

He smirked back as his hand grazed my finger where he had placed the ring on.

"I want to call you my wife, doesn't that sound sexy?" He said and I couldn't help but let out a laugh and he laughed with me, the sound of his laughter filling me with so much joy.

"Doesn't my husband sound much sexier?" I asked him back, making him look at me as he got my answer.

"It's done then." He stated as he neared me and kissed my lips ever so softly yet intensely that I felt my heart fill with contentment.

*

The dagger in my hand uncovered from it's sheath as I walked around the man sitting in the chair.

He was tied so he couldn't escape.

The man shievered as he sweat and tried getting out of the ropes at the same time, but froze on spot when he saw the dagger in my hand.

"Do you want me to repeat myself with this or you'd spit out?" I showed him my dagger, and I could see him flinching away from it.

"Spit out how many children you've abducted or else I'll tear you down, limb by limb."

He didn't give in easily so in a swift motion, the dagger in my hand, I slashed multiple cuts on him to show I wasn't playing around.

"Do you think I'm bullshitting? Are you going to tell me or I cut your life short right here?"

I raise my dagger to inflict more injury on him when he finally opened his filthy mouth and confessed his every crime.

After he was done talking he turned to me and implored me with his eyes, if his hands weren't tied he would've used them, but then it wouldn't be necessary cause he would've used his free hands to attack me instead, but would he have won?

"You'll let me go now right? I've told you everything." He asked me like we were in some transactional relationship.

I smiled as I cut open his ropes and freed him from them letting him roam his hands freely. "Go."

I didn't need to tell him twice before he stood up from his chair and hurriedly dragged his injured feet towards the door before he was shot right through his brain, making him fall face front.

The gun didn't go off from me, but from behind me as Leo put down his extended hand, the smoke emitting out of his gun.

Yuri came forward and scanned down at the man's body which had pooled a ton of blood from itself.

"Instant death for the motherfucker. We should've let him get a taste of Sinn's torture room instead."

Leo came forward from the back and stood beside Yuri to scan the guy's body. "You keep forgetting that Sinn has retired and the only time he takes on a mission is when she asks him or if he feels the need to get involved."

He pointed to me and I joined them both, standing before the man's body.

"And sometimes she's even worse then Sinn. Remeber when she almost butchered that child rapists. We had to call Sinn to intervene only cause we still had to take out information from that bastard otherwise not even Sinn would've stopped her."

Leo went on rambling and Yuri interjected, "I only said it cause I missed Sinn. And I'll never forget that day, I was the one who called him. I thought she might slice me in half too if I tried stopping her."

I rolled my eyes at Yuri as they recalled that day's event, when I went out of control and beat the shit out of the child rapist. If only we didn't have to take out more information from him, they wouldn't have called Sinn to stop me and would've let me deal with that filthy being.

"Not to say that bastard took his own life. He didn't want to die at her hands after going through with her torture." Leo added, and Yuri acknowledged him from beside him as two man came and dragged the man's body out and dealt with it.

"I think we're done for today." Leo said, and looked at me knowingly.

I was waiting to rush back home to my babies.

It was 2 in the morning and I entered our portion of the mansion which had no lights on at this time.

With silent steps, I tried to attempt to wash up and tuck under the bed unnoticed when before I could even walk towards the direction of his room, the door to Sinn's study opened, and I haulted in my steps turning to look at him who had his arms crossed.

He made way in the doorway to his study and I followed in before he shut it behind me.

"Were you working? Is Vivienne sleeping? Did you guys eat?" I instantly bombarded him with questions when he stared at me.

"Come."

My brain as always didn't help it, "You know I can't cum like this you'll need to put in the work-" I heard Sinn clear his throat as I saw him hide a smile.

"I meant come here."  he scanned my whole body before he gently grabbed my hand to pull me closer when I flinched.

It was like a ritual. Him scanning me for any injury after I come back from a mission.

He paused and looked at me finding my injury. He sat me on top of his table, taking out the first aid kit.

He scanned my hand where there was a cut and examined it. "Thankfully it's not deep enough to need stitches."

He applied some ointments on it and bandaged it. I saw our wedding ring on my finger as he gently caressed past it. My eyes met his wedding band which was on his ring finger as he bandaged my hand and I couldn't help the smile on my face.

"You sound like a doctor." I told him, and while his eyes focused on bandaging my hand he replied,

"That's cause I'm about to be one." He looked up at me as he was done with treating my hand but didn't let go of it, holding it gently.

"You're not hiding any injuries from me are you?" He looked at me speculating.

"I won't be able to anyway, it's not like I can keep my body hidden from you for long." I smirked and I saw him look back at me, his eyes filling in with intense emotions when my eyes landed on the monitor on Sinn's table.

He sensed me staring at it and knew instantly what I was thinking. My hand still in his, he walked us out of his study and into the room next to it.

Walking in, it was dark with fairy lights on. I made out the cot in the middle as we stepped in the room.

I saw my daughter sleeping soundly in the cot with a little teddy in her arms which I had gifted her for her birthday.

I pushed her hair from her face as I leaned down to look at her sleeping figure.

As if she sensed my presence in the room her eyes opened and met mine.

"Mommy," Vivienne almost immediately lit up and attempted to get up when I grabbed her in my arms and hugged her. Her small three year old body held onto me as she wrapped her legs around me.

"I missed you mommy." Her cute baby voice told me and I kissed her cheek as I replied, "Mommy missed you too."

Tonight was one of the few nights since I've decided to go back to work that I didn't get to tuck Vivienne to bed. Sinn and I both usually try to be there when she goes to bed so she feels secure that both her parents are there with her.

Vivienne was being extra clingy to me cause I wasn't there when she went to bed.

"Mommy's here, I'm sorry I wasn't there when you were going to bed. Mommy and Dada are both here now okay, so you can go back to sleep." I told her gently as I tucked her hair behind her ear and Sinn helped me lay her down.

Vivienne held both of our hand, she always do before going to bed. We both sat as she stared at us before her eyes grew heavy and she dozed off this time without waking up again.

We stayed there for a while just staring at our daughter sleeping peacefully holding onto our hand.

Finally walking out, I didn't close the door fully. We usually do this if she wakes up and wants to come find us if we aren't there first.

"She must've sensed you were back. I was watching her from the monitor, she was sleeping before you came back." Sinn told me and I let out a sigh.

"Sometimes I feel guilty when I'm not able to be there when she wants me to. You know how she's at peace when she has both the both of us."

Sinn stopped to look at me as I continued, "I want to give her the childhood we didn't have."

Sinn cupped my cheeks with his hand. "It's not like you're deliberately wanting to not be there for her. And you usually go to work after she falls asleep at night."

I want to be there for her in her childhood as much as I can be, cause they grow up so fast that you don't even have time to process it. And the quality time to spend with them in their earlier childhood goes away and then you don't know the reason why your child is distant from you.

That's the thing I'm the most scared of with her. I knew I had to prepare for spending sometime away from her when I decided to continue with the missions.

Rightnow I try to only work after she goes to sleep since she's still so young, but some days I have to be out when she's up and it pains me everytime when her sad little eyes see me go.

Sinn grazed my cheek as his hand still held my face, "You're a wonderful mother, and an incredible woman who is on a mission to get rid of child predators. When Vivienne grows up she'll be proud of her Mama."

Sinn's words really made me feel good. That's how he always is, pulling me out of my thoughts and making things simpler for me.

The only reason why I'm at ease is cause I know Sinn would take care of her in my absense, and let me tell you he's incredible.

He manages to work and study with taking care of Vivienne when I'm not around. And even the days when I'm too exhausted to lift a finger, he takes over.

With him by my side, life seems like I can tale whatever it throws at me and maybe, enjoy the moments of bliss.

"And you're a wonderful father who every daughter deserves. One who gives his daughter his time in the day and sacrifices his sleep during the night studying and being there for her when her mommy has to leave." I told him and he looked at me like he felt extremely touched by what I said.

"And what about the kind of husband I am?" Sinn teased, as his arms wrapped around my waist and I smirked as I put my hand around his neck.

"The kind who will never leave me to deal with the cruelty of this world." I looked up at him and Sinn stared at me. His eyes filled with tenderness as they reflected how deeply moved he was by my words.

*

Today I had a day off and I'll dedicate it all to the two most precious beings in my world.

"Mommy you're going to spend the whole day with me and not leave when it's time for bed?" Vivienne asked innocently and my heart swelled at her question.

"No baby, mommy's not going anywhere today. I'm sorry that you have to spend time away from me." I told her and my baby looked up at me with her dad's grey eyes which were filled with innocence, "You don't have to be sorry mommy. Dada told me you go out to fight bad guys like batman."

I laughed at her remark. She smiled her cute smile.  She's so articulate at her young age being only a three year old.

"Dada told you that?"

She nodded her head innocently. "Dada told me to make the world a better place for children like me, I will sometimes have to go to bed without you."

I looked over at her carefully and asked, "Does that upset you?"

I anticipated her reply as she looked up at me from her playing set, the eyes her father gave her shining brightly as she smiled. "Why would I be sad? Mommy's like batman saving children."

She said it so matter of factly like it's nothing out of the ordinary that it made me burst out laughing. I hugged her lightly hearing her muffled voice, "Mommy I can't breath."  I let her go and kissed both her cheeks.

"You are the most adorable baby I could've ever asked for." I looked at her with utmost adoration when I sensed Sinn sitting with us on the floor where she was playing.

"What are we talking about?" He asked as he looked from me to Vivienne.

Vivienne looked up from her playing at her Dada, "That mommy's batman." Her innocent words made a smile appear on Sinn's face as he looked at me, his eyes filled with warmth.

"That's right." He said and Vivienne suddenly got both our attention.

She grabbed her hairtie and grabbed Sinn's hair. I looked at them in amazement and Sinn wasn't the least fazed.

"Mommy come and help me, Dada has soft hair so the hairtie doesn't stick." She said purely and I nodded my head as I made my way over to them still taken aback by this sight.

Sinn sat quitely with folded arms as Vivienne and I both tied his hair into little ponytail.

"Vivi, something seems missing." I said as I looked at him and thought. Vivienne sat beside me.

"I know what it is," I grabbed one of her markers and drew blush on both of his cheek. Sinn stared at me in confusion and I couldn't help the laugh threatening to leave.

"What do you think?" I asked her and she looked in awe at her father.

"This looks great, I'll do this next time on Dada." She told him and Sinn gave me a look.

"Don't give her new ideas." I laughed at his loosely tied hair and the blush I made on his face with the marker just now. He looked so adorable and not the Sinn Phoenix people feared.

He opened the front camera of his phone and then gave me a glare when he saw what I did and I laughed openly.

Vivienne joined me and Sinn just sat there looking at both of us. "Now you come here."

He grabbed my arm and waist in a swift motion and pinned me down on his lap and drew something on my face all the while I laughed as I resisted.

I took his phone camera and saw he had drawn a small heart on my cheek. I looked at him and saw a smile on his face. This guy.

"Now it's your turn." He grabbed Vivienne and she giggled as Sinn drew on her face and I joined him.

I drew a smiley face and Sinn did a star.

"Let's take a picture." I told them and Sinn held Vivienne on his lap as he grabbed my waist and I took a quick selfie.

I saw the picture after and I couldn't help but smile at our little family.

*

We had put Vivienne to nap in the afternoon after we had done playing with her. She was tired and dozed off in my arms.

Sinn came out from the bathroom after I had. I watched as he appeared in the room with his hair damp after washing his face.

He saw me staring at him and a smirk formed on his face. I cleared my throat as I said,

"What do you say about a one on one?" He looked at me with a raised brow.

"For the old times sake." He stared at me after I added and gave me a smirk.

We were standing in the middle of the room where Sinn had first trained me when he took me under his wing.

I would've never guessed our fate to bring us here, me wearing his ring and having his child.

He waited as he signaled me to come on him and I didn't waste a second as I tried to bring him down, but we're talking about Sinn Phoenix here.

He had retired but it didn't mean he wasn't the strong Lucifer of the Three Devils.

He dodged my every attack and tried to counter attack but I wasn't the same girl who he smacked against the mattress everytime she failed to defend.

I had trained relentlessly everyday since that day till now, and I dodged every move of his.

I didn't know how much time had passed since we started. And just when I was about to make a move he grabbed my arm and pulled me to him, his other hand traveled to my neck as he stared at me, our face inches apart from one other.

"I give up, Layla." His grey eyes met mine and my breath hitched as I could feel the heat radiate off his body from how close we were.

The skin of my neck burned from the contact of his hand on it. Our breathing heavy from our one on one.

"I surrender my being to you." His words made such an impact on me that I couldn't move. The sheer intensity of his eyes made my whole body burn.

We both knew from our show down, that none of us is losing. And until one of us give up willingly, we would've gone about it for who knows how long.

I saw the man I loved with my soul surrender himself to me.

I couldn't help but smile.

Our foreheads touched as our eyes met, holding such intensity for one another which sparked on the very first day we met, when I had a dagger in my hand and he held it, his other behind my neck making my whole body burn.

Since then, our souls knew it yearned for the other.

The End.

An; finally it has come to an end!

I'd love to hear your thoughts on the story so please drop down your review :)

I hope you enjoyed Layla and Sinn's journey just as much as I did writing it.

I feel sad parting ways with this story and its characters that I have been writing for more than 3 years.

But all things must come to an end, and if I hadn't finished His Rebel, yall would've hated me, lol.

Thank you to everyone who stayed up till the end, I took many long breaks in between, but you guys still stayed and waited.

My writing's not perfect, but I write only cause it brings me joy. Regardless of my writing being imperfect, thank you for reading.

Layla and Sinn has been one of the characters for whom I truly wanted a happy end, and I hope I have executed it well.

Thank you for your time.

Until next time.